Late Thursday, Starbucks said it wants to unwind an agreement under which Kraft has distributed Starbucks bagged coffee as well as its Seattle’s Best coffee brand in supermarkets and other food retailers since 1998.
The business has grown to $500 million in annual sales from $50 million 12 years ago, according to Tim McLevish, Kraft’s chief financial officer.
Starbucks’ public statement about its intention to end the deal sparked a tit-for-tat exchange of press releases issued late Thursday night, with both companies accusing the other of having improperly characterized the terms of the pact.